Tang Dynasty: A Guide to Avoiding Pitfalls for Li Er at the Start

Chapter 71 Where would I get the money to treat those big shots to dinner?

"Auntie!"

As soon as the woman finished speaking, the girl in the light green dress to her left frowned.

Startled by her shout, the beautiful woman patted her chest and said, "Why are you scaring me? What if you frighten your brother? How can you bear the consequences?"

The woman quickly supported her still-flat stomach.

The girl was somewhat annoyed: "Mother, don't you know where we are now? There are many nobles in Chang'an. Although Father is a Duke, he only got it because he sponsored His Majesty back then. He is not like those who got their titles through merit."

"Now that he has been suddenly summoned back by the new crown prince, we don't know if it's a blessing or a curse. How can you be so arrogant, Mother?"

The girl was somewhat arrogant.

The woman was stunned by what she said and it took her a while to come to her senses. She then pointed at the girl's forehead in an annoyed manner.

"You old hag, how dare you scold your mother like that? Your father named you Shun, I think it was a mistake."

Wu Shun rubbed his forehead, and pulled his younger sister in front of him, still unconvinced.

"Second Aunt, aren't you right?"

“Yes.” Three-year-old Wu Erniang nodded vigorously, then tilted her head and pondered for a moment before continuing, “Father said that Mother keeps saying she wants to have a younger brother, but in the end it might still be a younger sister.”

"You little brat, you've really angered me!"

She raised her hand and chased after her two daughters, who looked at each other, grabbed each other's hands, and ran laughing into the mansion.

This scene was witnessed by Wen He, who was completely unrelated to the main story.

"Those two girls must be Wu Shun and Wu Meimei, right? They seem to have a good relationship."

Thinking about the future fate of the sisters, Wen He couldn't help but feel a little sad.

Wu Shun, though widowed, was restless. In her pursuit of power, she not only offered up her daughter but also slept with Emperor Gaozong (Li Zhi).

Therefore, she fell out with her sister Wu and they both eventually died tragically.

One unsolved case remains.

At the time, some people questioned whether Li Xian was the son of Wu Shun's daughter, Helan. When this reached the ears of the then Crown Prince Li Xian, he was filled with anxiety and became estranged from his sister, Wu.

Ultimately, this led to a tragedy.

Although this event is recorded in official history, many people in later generations have questioned it.

"Sometimes power can change a lot of things."

Wen He sighed inwardly and silently shook her head.

Wenzhong, standing beside him, watched him sigh and look helpless, and couldn't help but feel suspicious.

Is this young man suffering from hysteria?

Wenrou gently tugged at Wenhe's long sleeve.

"Brother, I'm hungry."

"Uh, didn't you just eat a sugar figurine?"

"It's not filling enough, I want to eat soup noodles."

The little girl blinked, looking expectantly at her older brother.

How come I never noticed before that this little girl is actually a foodie?
Wen He chuckled and turned to look at the butler, Wen Zhong.

Since they had just moved, they were afraid that there was nothing left in the mansion.

To his surprise, Wenzhong seemed to have guessed his thoughts and said with a smile, "Young master and young lady, rest assured, everything has been prepared in the mansion. If you would like to have a meal, just give the order."

"In addition, His Highness instructed that the daily expenses of the mansion shall be borne by the Crown Prince's Palace from now on."

It includes room and board, a salary of 100,000 yuan a year, and the work is very easy.

It would be strange if a boss like that didn't succeed.

"Let's have a simple meal first, and then hold a housewarming banquet in a couple of days."

Wen He's so-called housewarming banquet was actually just an invitation for the three little ones to have a meal at her home, and if possible, to invite Li Shimin as well.

As for the others, he didn't seem to know them very well.

Jing Junhong did say he would come to visit, but Wen He didn't take it to heart.

He survived a great calamity and effectively thwarted Xue Wanche; he will surely become a duke in the future.

They definitely wouldn't look down on his county.

"Yes, then this old servant will take care of it right away," Wenzhong replied with a smile.

Wen He thought that when he said he was going to do something, he meant he was going to prepare lunch. Unexpectedly, in the afternoon, Wen Zhong wrote a secret letter and sent it to the palace.

The contents of the secret letter were nothing more than Wen He's mood during the move today, and his plan to hold a housewarming banquet.

Inside the Lizheng Hall of the East Palace.

"That brat was indeed taken aback when he saw the Wu family members." Li Shimin put down the secret letter and laughed heartily.

Wen He had surprised him several times before when she talked about the future.

Even in the dead of night, I have been awakened by nightmares of the fall of the Tang Dynasty.

He was once somewhat afraid of Wen He, feeling that people from the future were difficult to control.

But he soon discovered that this person from the future, who seemed to have a mature soul, was as unruly as a child.

Such a personality is cleverly good, without any guile.

But he was still somewhat unhappy.

His future was being controlled by others, and apart from threatening Wen He's life, he couldn't truly take revenge on him.

Today, I can say that I have finally gotten my revenge.

It even gave the kid a fright.

"As for the housewarming party... Huang Chun."

Li Shimin pondered for a moment, then called out.

Huang Chun, who was waiting outside the Lizheng Hall, immediately responded and entered the hall with small, quick steps and a bow.

This place is smaller than the Liangyi Hall, but it is already the main hall of the East Palace.

Although Li Yuan had previously ceded the Taiji Palace, Li Shimin did not want rumors to spread in the city, so he planned to continue living in the Eastern Palace before ascending the throne.

This fulfilled both the father-son bond and his original wish.

"The servant is here."

"Immediately have the Imperial Household Department prepare invitations for the relocation banquet of Zi Qiao in Gaoyang County and distribute them... No, I'll draft them myself."

Li Shimin originally intended to bestow upon Wen He a great honor.

But when he thought about that brat's big mouth, he regretted it a little.

Let's not invite anyone else yet. Even among those from the Qin Prince's faction, we need to be selective.

Li Shimin pondered for a moment, wrote down a list, and then handed it to Huang Chun.

"Send out invitations according to the list on this silk scroll, and set the date for five days from now."

"promise."

Huang Chun held the silk cloth in both hands, greatly surprised.

He had never seen a king write an invitation to a subject's housewarming party.

When he left the main hall, his eyes widened as he looked at the name on the silk.

The first line prominently displays the names of Changsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui, Wei Zheng, and others, followed by Yuchi Gong, Cheng Zhijie, and Jing Junhong.

A dozen or so in a row, all either dukes or future dukes.

He had a feeling that Li Jing might have been on the list if he hadn't been absent.

There was one name that puzzled him greatly.

Samurai Go?
Furthermore, it was specifically noted that the Duke of Ying should bring his family along.

"What is the meaning behind Your Highness's actions?"

Huang Chun was puzzled, but he dared not ask too many questions. He pondered for a long time but still could not guess Li Shimin's meaning.

Not to mention him, when Wen He learned that Li Shimin was going to send him an invitation, and that it was for a group of nobles and high-ranking officials, he was furious.

They overturned the stone pot that had just been made.

"I just wanted to invite Li Chengqian and the others over for a stir-fry, why is he making such a fuss about it?"

Looking at the jar of cooking oil that he had painstakingly accumulated, he gritted his teeth in anger.

"You said you'd cover the daily expenses, so you're not going to make me pay for this banquet out of my own pocket, are you?"

Thinking about this problem gave him a headache.

"Where would I get the money to treat those big shots to dinner?"

Thank you to the following readers for their monthly tickets:

Lelele, Shengqian_Xiaoyao, Chairman of the Eastern Hemisphere, wqe, GatoG, Shuai de Budao Ziba, Hua Qianshu__, Fei Zi Mo, He Feng Xiang Qi, Qing 66, Yu Ji's Husband Xiang Yu, Book Friend 160514180621946
——

Thank you to all the readers who congratulated Silent on her engagement in the comments section.

I'm a bit tired today. This chapter took a while to write, but thankfully I made it in time for the update.

Thank you for your support, fellow readers.



(End of this chapter)